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As we've been teasing on the Gear Live Twitter and Facebook pages, we are teaming up with Monster Cable this week to give away an iPhone 4S as part of Monster's 8X iPhone 4S Sweepstakes. We've got two prizes that you can win this week - one is an iPhone 4S with a Monster Accessory Pack included, but we're also giving away a second Monster Accessory Pack as well. The Accessory Pack is a $260 value and includes:

Turbine In-Ear Monitors ($179 value)

Monster iCable 800 ($19.95 value)

Monster Mobile PowerPlug Dual USB 700 ($34.95 value)

CleanTouch Pen ($24.95 value)

So, how do you enter to win all this good stuff? To enter to win the iPhone 4S with Accessory Pack, head on over to Monster's giveaway page on Facebook. You can enter there each week for another chance at walking away with Apple's latest smartphone. In addition, since we're also giving away a second Monster Accessory Pack here on the site, you can enter using our widget below. We've got just one requirement for entry, but we are also offering you guys a bunch of extra ways to score bonus entries:

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Yep - we are giving away an iPhone 5 to one lucky Gear Live reader as soon as the device launches, and we've got all the details on how to enter below. Hot on the heels of us giving away five iPad 2 tablets, we are set to bring you the newest Apple smartphone. Now, of course, Apple has yet to even formally announce the iPhone 5, but we all know it's coming, and that it should be announced before the end of the month. That said, we do have a few strong rumors about the device:

This giveaway is made possible by Decide.com, which has just launched its new mobile phone section, which helps you track the latest news around smartphones and provides advice on when you should buy or wait on a purchase. Use the widget below to enter--we've got a bunch of options available to allow you to rack up a bunch of bonus entries, and the widget will allow you to track them all. You can enter once per day until 11:59 PM PST on September 19th, and if the iPhone 5 isn't released and available by September 30 and you don't wanna wait, you can opt to select another gadget up to $500 in price.

Wanna win a 32 GB Apple iPad 2? We'll we've got a few to give away to our readers across the network of Gear Live sites, starting right here on the flagship. We've teamed up with Vonage to offer the giveaway of the iPad 2 (or a $700 Apple gift card, if you prefer) along with $15 in iTunes credit that can be used with the new Vonage Time to Call app. We've got a few ways for you to enter, allowing up to four entries per person.

Timeframe: The contest ends on September 2nd, 2011. A winner chosen using Random.org.Eligibility: The contest is open to residents of the US and Canada.Prize: The one winner will receive a 32 GB Apple iPad 2 (or a $700 Apple Gift Card) and $15 iTunes credit.

Here at Gear Live, we love us some Slacker. If you don’t know, Slacker is a fantastic streaming music service. It has millions of songs in its catalogue, and real DJs actually control their channels, which means you get a great mix of songs that go well together, rather than something put together by an algorithm. While Slacker is free, they also have a couple of upgraded services - Slacker Radio Plus, and the newly released Slacker Premium Radio. This typically costs $10 a month:

Play songs, artists, albums on-demand

Custom playlists

Unlimited Skips

Unlimited Song Requests

No Audio or Banner Ads

Complete Lyrics

Over 2 Million Songs

Cache stations to smartphones for offline listening

ABC News and headline news updates for any station

"Peek Ahead" artist and album previews

We said this would be big, so here’s what we're gonna do - we are going to give away 10 one-year subscriptions to Slacker Premium Radio. How do you enter? Easy:

Here at Gear Live, we love us some Slacker. If you don’t know, Slacker is a fantastic radio’s streaming music service. It has millions of songs in its catalogue, and real DJs actually control their channels, which means you get a great mix of songs that go well together. While Slacker is free, they also have a service called Slacker Radio Plus, which adds the following perks:

Unlimited Skips

Unlimited Song Requests

No Audio or Banner Ads

Complete Lyrics

Over 2 Million Songs

Cache stations to smartphones for offline listening

ABC News and headline news updates for any station

"Peek Ahead" artist and album previews

We said this would be big, so here’s what we're gonna do - we are going to give away:

FIVE one-year subscriptions to Slacker Radio Plus

FIVE three-month subscriptions to Slacker Radio Plus

FIVE one-month subscriptions to Slacker Radio Plus

We are going to make it ridiculously easy to enter as well. All you need to do is become a fan of Gear Live on Facebook, and leave a comment on our wall - feel free to enter as many times as you'd like. That’s it! On Friday we will select fifteen random entrants and hit them with the goods.

We're giving away an HTC HD7 Windows Phone 7 device to one of you guys here in our "Doing More with Less" giveaway! Not too familiar with WP7? Be sure to check out our Windows Phone 7 review, and read on for the details on how to enter.

Over the past three years, we've seen smartphones shrink in size while gaining a ton of functionality. In fact, it's hard to imagine ever using the bulky QWERTY sliders that were just about as thick as the original Game Boy. With the iPhone, Android devices, thinner BlackBerrys, and now WIndows Phone 7 devices jumping into the fray, we've truly got a situation where we are able to do way more than we'd ever dreamed we could do with a mobile phone, in a device that is so small that it comfortably fits in our pocket while the manufacturers tout how thin they are. Speaking of doing more with less, did you know that the smartphone in your pocket has more technology in it than the first rocket that went to outer space?

Now we want to hear from you--hit the comments and give us some examples where you can do more with less. It can be technology-related, or not. We will be picking a random winner based on the comments received. Here are the official rules:

How to enter: Just leave a comment on this article, focusing on "Doing More with Less". You can leave one comment per day until the giveaway’s close. Each comment must be substantially different than the previous.

Timeframe: The contest ends on November 29th, 2010. At this time comments will be closed on this post and a winner chosen with Random.org.

Eligibility: The contest is open to US residents only who are at least 18 years old at the time of entry.

Prize: The one winner will receive the HTC HD7, a T-Mobile Windows Phone 7 device that's an approximate retail value of $500.

This giveaway is brought to you by the new Windows Phone 7. Learn more about Windows Phone online and see it in person at local T-Mobile stores today.

After enjoying a 63% approval rating after his 100 days in office, President Barack Obama’s rating has dipped below 50% to 48% after his first 500 days in office. It’s been a tougher road for Obama as his tenure as president continued, especially with polarizing issues such as economic bailouts, offshore drilling, and the big one, healthcare. While the stock market has slowly recovered, people still find themselves unemployed and obviously dissatisfied with the rate of speed the president is turning this around. So, how does Obama compare to previous presidents?

George W. Bush’s approval rating stood 77 percent in late May 2002, just eight months after the September 11 attacks. Bill Clinton was at 51 percent in late May 1994. George H.W. Bush stood at 65 percent in May of 1990. Ronald Reagan’s approval rating was at 45 percent in May of 1982. Jimmy Carter stood at 43 percent in May of 1978 and Richard Nixon was at 59 percent in May of 1970.

Luckily Obama’s administration isn’t judged only after 500 days, but they will need to start to win back the people’s administration before they know it in order for a successful re-election in 2012.

Former Vice President, Al Gore, and wife of 40 years, Tipper Gore, sent out an e-mail to family friends announcing their separation - “We are announcing today that after a great deal of thought and discussion, we have decided to separate.” Forty years is a long time to be married and major props should be given to the couple as living a political lifestyle is not an easy life to live. Look at all the scandals of infidelity and closeted sexual orientation that have reached the headlines in the recent past. And the thing about the Gores, never seemed to be putting on a show for the cameras, the 2000 election campaign excepted. In any case, it’s always a sad day when couples that have been together for so long decide to move on separately. Good luck to both, but the question remains, “Who gets the internet?” (QUEUE: rim shot).

Here at Gear Live, we love us some Slacker. If you don’t know, Slacker is a fantastic radio’s streaming music service. It has millions of songs in its catalogue, and real DJs actually control their channels, which means you get a great mix of songs that go well together. While Slacker is free, they also have a service called Slacker Radio Plus, which adds the following perks:

Unlimited Skips

Unlimited Song Requests

No Audio or Banner Ads

Complete Lyrics

Over 2 Million Songs

So here’s what we are going to do - we are going to give away a two 1-year subscriptions and three 3-month subscriptions to Slacker Radio Plus, and we are going to make it ridiculously easy to enter. All you need to do if become a fan of Gear Live on Facebook, and leave a comment on our wall. That’s it. Next Friday we will select five random entrants and hit them with the goods.

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The Short Version: If you donate to Haiti relief by SMS by texting “HAITI” to the number 90999, or by texting “YELE” to 501501, we will match your donation multiple times. Just leave a comment telling us how much you donated, and we will take care of the rest. We are currently matching donations 14 times.

Over the past couple of days, while trying to carry on with “business as usual,” I’ve personally found it hard to focus on tech, gadgets, and all of the CES 2010 goodness that we have yet to bring you, as the world is focused on the disastrous aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti. We’re sure you’ve seen the imagery, but if you haven’t, or if you aren’t quite sure, I encourage you to watch this AP report:

Gear Live & Friends Will Match Your Haiti SMS Donations!
We felt it was time to do our part to help, so with the support of a bunch of Gear Live friends, we are announcing that we will match SMS donations made by Gear Live readers and viewers. As many of you know, the Red Cross has made it super-simple to donate $10 to help out by simply texting the word HAITI to 90999. In fact, this has been so successful that it’s already earned $11 million in just a few days. That is fantastic - but the damage to the country is far greater than that, and every little bit helps. So here’s what we’re gonna do:

Starting now, if you send an SMS donation to either the Red Cross (by texting the word HAITI to 90999) or to YELE (by texting the word YELE to 501501) Gear Live will match it, up to $500. In addition, we have a bunch of our friends joining in as well:

$4500$5400$5650$6550 $6700 in pledged matching donations! For each donation you make, each entity above will match it, until their limit is reached. In other words, with our current eighteleven twelve contributors, your $10 donation will actually be matched sixnineeleventwelvefifteen seventeen times, resulting in a $70$100$120$130$160

$180 payment. So, what do you need to do? This is the easy part. Just scroll down and leave us a comment letting us know that you made a donation, and whether it was a $5 or $10 contribution. If you do it multiple times, let us know that too. Even better, if you want to be on our list as a person or company that will match donations, let us know!

Now, what if you don’t have any money to donate? We will make it easy. Just comment with a link to an article on from any of the following websites that you found interesting or helpful, and we will donate $10 on your behalf:

I have to give a big thank you to my pal Xavier over at Notebooks.com. He came up with the idea and invited me to donate. I then asked a few friends, and never thought we’d get the support that we did, so we kicked off our own campaign. Together with Notebooks.com, we have

$10,500$11,400$11,650$12,550

$12,700 in matching donations for your SMS contributions!

The time is now! Leave a comment after donating, tell your friends, forward this around, and share this on Facebook and Twitter using the buttons at the top of the article. Make us spend every penny of the matching funds that are available.